Floating game target

ABSTRACT

A recreational device comprising a generally bowl shaped base which has a density permitting the floatation of said base in a body of water, an upright elongated member projecting from the top of said base and above the surface of said water, and a plurality of elastic members connected at one end with said base and at the other end with an anchor means for maintaining the recreational device in a stable position when it is used as a game target in the water.

l atent fiemmens [451 Mar. 28, 1972 [s41 FLOATING GAME TARGET, 3,469,8449/1969 Sindelar ..273/10s R [72] Inventor: Richard slemmens 10640 WrenSt 3,134,594 5/1964 Crowley ..273/105R Coon p 55433 FOREIGN PATENTS ORAPPLICATIONS 1 1 Fil9d= 28, 1970 858,985 12/1970 Canada ..272/1B Appl.No.: 84,563

[52] HS. Cl. ..273/104, 273/l02.4, 9/8 R, 272/1 B, 273/105 [51] Int.(21. ..A63b 63/00 [58] Field ofSearch ..272/1 B; 273/104, 105 R, 100,273/102 R, 102.4; 9/8 R [56] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS3,350,097 10/1967 Chevrette ..273/l05 R 3,049,732 8/1962 Martin ..9/8 R3,582,078 6/1971 Katras ..273/105 R 3,403,907 10/1968 Keller ..273/105 R2,906,531 9/1959 Merickel ..272/l B Primary Examiner-Richard C. PinkhamAssistant Examiner-Marvin Siskind Attorney-Frederick E. Lange, WilliamC. Babcock and Eugene L. Johnson [5 7] ABSTRACT A recreational devicecomprising a generally bowl shaped base which has a density permittingthe floatation of said base in a body of water, an upright elongatedmember projecting from the top of said base and above the surface ofsaid water, and a plurality of elastic members connected at one end withsaid base and at the other end with an anchor means for maintaining therecreational device in a stable position when it is used as a gametarget in the water.

10 Claims, 5 Drawing Figures FLOATING GAME TARGET BACKGROUND OF THEINVENTION AND SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention relatesgenerally to a recreational device for use in a body of water, and morespecifically, to a recreational device which is used primarily as atarget or goal for various water games and which has a structure formaintaining the target or goal in a stable, upright position.

The present invention is designed to be used in a body of water, forexample, a lake, river, or swimming pool although it can be adapted foruse on land as well. When the recreational device of the presentinvention is used in the water, it provides a very stable target or goalfor various types of water games and sports. With the present invention,most of the conventional water games such as water basketball, waterhorseshoes, and ring toss can be played as well as nearly all otherwater games which require a target 'or a goal. In contrast to thepreviously used recreational devices, the present invention provides forthe goal or target to be supported in an extremely stable positionregardless of the action of the waves or other disturbances. The presentinvention provides for this stability through the use of a convex shapedbase, means for selectively partially filling the base with water, and aplurality of elastic members having one end connected with the base andthe other end connected with an anchor means for maintaining the base,and thus the target or goal, in a very stable, upright position, and forreturning the base to a stable position if it ever should be removedtherefrom.

Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide arecreational device which can support a target or goal for various watergames or water sports.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a recreationaldevice having a target or a goal which can be maintained in a relativelystable, upright position when used in the water.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a recreationaldevice for use in the water having a plurality of elastic members formaintaining a target or goal in a stable, upright position and forreturning said target or goal to a stable position once it is removedtherefrom.

A further object of the present invention is to provide a recreationaldevice for use in the water having a generally elongated upright memberwhich can be used as a target or goal itself or which can be used forsupporting various other types ofgoals.

Other objects and uses of the herein described invention will becomereadily apparent to those skilled in the art upon reference to thefollowing specification, the drawings, and to the appended claims.

DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is a front elevated view partly insection of the recreational device of the present invention showing therecreational device and the means for anchoring said recreationaldevice.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of a goal which can be mounted to theupright member of the recreational device for use in various watersports and games.

FIG. 3 is a top elevated view partly in section of the recreationaldevice shown in FIG. 1.

FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view showing the specific means forconnecting the upright member to the base of said recreational device.

FIG. 5 is a top elevated view of an alternative embodiment of therecreational device of the present invention.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT Referring first to FIG. 1, therecreational device of the present invention generally includes a base12 comprising a convex or bowl shaped bottom portion 14 and a relativelyflat portion 11, an upright member or peg 19, and means, including thestraps 16 and 21, the rope or chain 28, and the anchor 30 formaintaining the recreational device in a relatively stable position whenused in the water.

More specifically, the convex bottom portion 14 and the flat portion 11are constructed of polyethylene material. The bottom portion is formedinto a generally convex or bowl shaped configuration and includes a basewall 13 and a hollow bowl shaped interior portion. An annularenlargement 23 integrally formed with the base wall 13 and including anannular recessed portion, is located at the top of the bottom portion14. The recessed portion 27 has a generally C shaped cross section andis designed to combine with an annular tongue section 17, integrallyformed with the wall 33 of the top 11, to secure the top 11 to thebottom of the base 14. The annular tongue 17 includes a relativelynarrow neck portion and a wider main body portion for selectivelysnapping into and out of the annular C shaped recessed portion 27 of theenlargement 23. When the top 11 is joined with the bottom 14 by thislocking arrangement, the bowl shaped base 12 is sealed to prevent waterfrom leaking into or out of the base.

A pair of vents or ports 54, only one of which is shown in FIG. 1, arelocated in the bottom portion of the base 14 and pass through the wall13. The ports 54 are used for selectively introducing water into ordischarging water from the interior 'portion of the base. A pair ofplugs 37 are associated with the pair of ports 54 to selectively openand close the ports 54 for the introduction or discharge of water intothe interior portion of the base. When the water is completelydischarged from the base 12, the overall density of the base issubstantially less than the density of water, thereby causing the base12 to float freely on the water. The recreational device 10 in thiscondition, however, is quite unstable because of the difference betweenthe density of the base and that of the water. This lack of stabilityrenders the device 10 undesirable for most water games. By removing theplugs 37 from the vent holes 54, a selected amount of water can beintroduced into the interior portion of the base 12 to effectivelyincrease the density of the base 12 and thereby obtain the desiredbuoyancy and stability. When the desired buoyancy is obtained, the plugs37 are inserted into the vents 54 to retain the water introduced intothe base 12.

Referring now to FIG. 4, a generally elongated upright target peg 19which has an enlarged portion near its base is connected to the topportion of the base 11 by a bracket 40 and a threaded screw 41 whichpasses through the enlarged portion of the peg l9 and under a portion ofthe bracket 40. The bracket 40 shown in FIG. 4 includes a U shapedportion 43 and a pair of horizontally extending flanges 45 which aredisposed against the upper surface of the top portion 11. The bracket 40is mounted to the base 12 by a pair of screws 42 passing through a pairof holes in each of the flanges 45, through a pair of aligned holes inthe top portion of the base 11, and into a backing plate 44 disposedagainst the underside of the top portion of the base. The backing plate44 contains threaded holes to receive the screws 42 which, whentightened, secure the bracket 40 tightly to the top portion of the base11. The generally cylindrical peg 19 is then placed over the U shapedportion 43 of the bracket 40 with a pair of holes in the peg 19 alignedwith the U shaped portion 43. A threaded member 41 is then insertedthrough the holes in the peg 19 and the U shaped portion 43 and tightlysecured in that position. With this arrangement, the peg 19 is securedtightly to the top portion of the base. If it is desired to use therecreational device without the peg 19, peg 19 can be removed from thetop portion of the base 11 by removing the screw 41, the peg 19, and thescrews 42 holding the bracket 40 to the top 1 1.

As previously mentioned, one of the objects of the present invention isto provide a stable target or goal which can be used for various typesof water sports or games. In the preferred embodiment shown in FIG. 1,that target or goal is an elongated member used primarily as a targetfor rings (not shown) thrown by participants in the game. In addition tothe peg 19, a number of other types of goals can be attached to therecreational device 10. For example, the goal 31 shown in FIG. 2 can beattached to the top part of the peg l9 and used for various types ofwater sports involving the use of a ball. The goal shown in FIG. 2includes a hollow cylindrical member or pipe 38 having an internaldiameter slightly larger than the external diameter of the peg 19 sothat the pipe 38 can slide over the peg 19. A U shaped standard 32,having two elongated members and a base, is connected near its base tothe pipe 38 with the two spaced elongated members extending upwardly tosupport a circular hoop or goal 35. A third member 47 also is connectedto the pipe 38 and extends upwardly and outwardly to help support thegoal 35 and to direct the ball 39 (shown in FIG. 2 as broken line 39).The member 47 causes the ball passing through the hoop 35 to return in apredetermined direction.

The hoop or goal 35 includes a circular steel ring 34 which extendsaround the base of the hoop 35 to mount the hoop onto the two uprightportions of the standard 32 and the member 47. The hoop 35 is connectedto these members by a .l-bolt 59 passing through each of the two uprightportions of the member 32 and the member 47 with the .I-portion of thebolt 59 extending around the ring 34. A wing nut 60 associated with eachJ-bolt draws the J-bolt toward the members 47 and 32 to thereby securethe ring 34 and the hoop to these members. The particular structure ofthe goal 31 shown in FIG. 2 includes a plurality of tongue portions 36defining the top portion of the hoop 35 which also serve as a deflectionmeans for guiding the ball 39 through the hoop 35.

A further object of this invention is to provide a structure whichmaintains a target or goal in a stable position when used in the water.Referring to FIG. 3, four relatively nonelastic straps 16 are connectedto a collar 26. The collar 26 is circular and has a center opening witha diameter slightly larger than the external diameter of the enlargedportion of the peg 19 permitting the collar 26 to slip over the peg 19and to be disposed against the top portion of the base 11. The collar 26also contains four elongated holes near its outer periphery forattaching the straps 16 to the collar 26. Each of the straps 16 includesa portion extending from a buckle 18 to the collar 26 where it issecured thereto, and a portion extending radially outwardly from thebuckle 18 to the outer peripheral edge of the top 11. Then, as shown inFIG. 1, each of the straps 16 extends around the peripheral edge of thetop 11 and downwardly along the side of the bottom portion of the base14. A strap guide 15 associated with each of the four straps 16 isconnected to the bottom portion of the base 14 by a pair of screws andserves to maintain each of the straps 16 in proper circumferentialalignment.

An elastic strap 21 is connected to the lower end of each of the straps16 by a metal ring 55. Each of the straps 21 extends downwardly from themetal ring 55 to a yoke member 22 located below the axial center of thebase 12. The yoke 22 contains four holes through which each of the fourelastic straps 21 passes to connect the straps 21 to the yoke 22. Theprimary function of the elastic members 21 is to maintain the base 12 ina stable position and to quickly return the base to a stable, uprightposition if for some reason the base 12 is tipped or tilted. Because theyoke 22 is anchored as hereinafter disclosed, the tipping or tilting ofthe base 12 in any given direction stretches the elastic member 21located on the side of the base 12 opposite to that toward which thebase is tilted. The stretching of this elastic member increases theforce tending to return the base to a stable, upright position, andthereby causes the base to return to this stable, upright position muchmore quickly.

An eye bolt 25 is connected to the center portion of the yoke so thatthe eye portion of the bolt 25 is disposed downwardly. An anchor rope orchain 28 is connected to the eye bolt 25 and extends downwardly to aswivel snap 29 which in turn is connected to an anchor 30. Although notshown as such in FIG. 1, the anchor chain 28 is adjustable so as topermit the recreational device 10 to be used in all depths of water. Thedesired depth at which the device 10 is normally used depends primarilyon the game being played and the skill, age, and mobility of the gameparticipants.

The preferred embodiment of the present invention also discloses afour-part flotation collar 20 which serves to increase the stability ofthe base 12. The collar 20 includes a polyfoam member positioned betweeneach of the four straps l6 and an elastic cord 56 passing through eachof the four polyfoam members for securing the collar 20 to the base 12.The collar 20 is disposed tightly against the outer wall 13 andimmediately beneath the enlarged portion 23.

Although the preferred embodiment thus far described discloses the top11 to be circular, it can be of various shapes. As shown in FIG. 5, thebase 112 is elongated and the top 111 has an oval shape. The remainingelements shown in FIG. 5 correspond generally to elements shown in FIG.3 except that the reference numerals in FIG. 5 differ from thecorresponding reference numerals of FIG. 3 by one hundred.

The operation and use of the present invention can be summarized asfollows. First of all, the recreational device 10 of FIG. 1 is takeninto the water and, at the proper depth, the rope or chain 28 isadjusted and the anchor 30 dropped into the water. The vents or ports 54are then opened and the base 12 is tipped until the water flows into thevents 54. When the base 12 is filled to a level at which a desiredbuoyancy and stability is obtained, the vent holes 54 are closed. Thestraps 16 are then loosened via the buckles 18 so that the yoke 22 isslightly below the bottom of the base 14. Also, since the flotationcollar 20 will maintain the recreational device 10 in a floatingposition by itself, the vent holes 54 may be left open when the collar20 is used.

While in operation, each of the straps 16 and 21 serve to maintain thebase 12 and thus the peg 19 in a very stable position. If, through theaction of waves or other disturbances, the base is tipped or tilted,certain of the elastic straps 21 are stretched. Then, the force of theelasticity tending to return the straps 21 to their normal unstretchedposition serve also to return the base 12 and thus the peg 19 to itsnormal stable, upright position.

Although the description of the preferred embodiment of the presentinvention has been quite specific, the present invention can be embodiedin other forms not specifically shown in the present specification.Accordingly, it is the inventors intention that the scope of the presentinvention be dictated by the appended claims rather than by thedescription of the preferred embodiment.

I claim as my invention:

1. A recreational device designed to be used primarily as a target forvarious water games comprising:

a base having a density such as to permit floatation on the surface ofwater and a relatively convex portion which is designed to be partiallyimmersed beneath the surface of the water;

a generally elongated upright member supported by said base serving as atarget for various water games; and

means for maintaining said base and said upright member in a relativelystable position when said base is partially immersed in water including:

a plurality of elastic members connected with said base and extendingbelow the convex portion of said base;

a connecting means for connecting said plurality of elastic memberstogether below the convex portion of said base;

an anchor means for anchoring said base; and

means connecting said anchor means with said connecting means.

2. The recreational device of claim 1 wherein said base has a relativelycircular flat top portion and said elastic members are equally spacedaround the periphery of said base.

3. The recreational device of claim 1 wherein said generally elongatedupright member includes a water ball goal.

4. The recreational device of claim 1 wherein said elongated uprightmember is connected to said base by means including:

a generally U-shaped bracket connected to the top portion of said basein which the U-shaped portion of said bracket is designed to extendabove said base and inside said elongated upright member and a threadedmember extending through said upright member 5 in a directionperpendicular to the longitudinal axis of said upright member and belowand through the U- shaped portion of said bracket to secure said uprightmember to said base.

5. The recreational device of claim 1 and a floatation collar disposedabout the periphery of said base.

6. The recreational device of claim l in which said base contains arelatively flat top portion and at least one hole which can beselectively opened for introducing water into said convex portion ofsaid base and closed for retaining water within said convex portion ofsaid base.

7. The recreational device of claim 6 in which said flat top portion isremovable from said convex bottom portion.

8. The recreational device of claim 7 wherein said plurality of elasticmembers are connected with said base by a yoke member positioned in thecenter of said top portion and wherein each of said elastic membersincludes a non-elastic portion connected to said yoke member andextending radially to the periphery of said top portion and an elasticportion extending from said non-elastic portion to said means connectingsaid plurality of elastic members together.

9. The recreational device of claim 1 wherein said base includes arelatively flat oblong shaped top portion which is selectively removablefrom said convex portion.

10. The recreational device of claim 9 wherein said upright member isselectively removable from said base and wherein said base includes atleast one hole which can be selectively opened for introducing waterinto said convex portion of said base and closed for retaining waterwithin said convex portion of said base.

4 ik it K t

1. A recreational device designed to be used primarily as a target forvarious water games comprising: a base having a density such as topermit floatation on the surface of water and a relatively convexportion which is designed to be partially immersed beneath the surfaceof the water; a generally elongated upright member supported by saidbase serving as a target for various water games; and means formaintaining said base and said upright member in a relatively stableposition when said base is partially immersed in water including: aplurality of elastic members connected with said base and extendingbelow the convex portion of said base; a connecting means for connectingsaid plurality of elastic members together below the convex portion ofsaid base; an anchor means for anchoring said base; and means connectingsaid anchor means with said connecting means.
 2. The recreational deviceof claim 1 wherein said base has a relatively circular flat top portionand said elastic members are equally spaced around the periphery of saidbase.
 3. The recreational device of claim 1 wherein said generallyelongated upright member includes a water ball goal.
 4. The recreationaldevice of claim 1 wherein said elongated upright member is connected tosaid base by means including: a generally U-shaped bracket connected tothe top portion of said base in which the U-shaped portion of saidbracket is designed to extend above said base and inside said elongatedupright member and a threaded member extending through said uprightmember in a direction perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of saidupright member and below and through the U-shaped portion of saidbracket to secure said upright member to said base.
 5. The recreationaldevice of claim 1 and a floatation collar disposed about the peripheryof said base.
 6. The recreational device of claim 1 in which said basecontains a relatively flat top portion and at least one hole which canbe selectively opened for introducing water into said convex portion ofsaid base and closed for retaining water within said convex portion ofsaid base.
 7. The recreational device of claim 6 in which said flat topportion is removable from said convex bottom portion.
 8. Therecreational device of claim 7 wherein said plurality of elastic membersare connected with said base by a yoke member positioned in the centerof said top portion and wherein each of said elastic members includes anon-elastic portion connected to said yoke member and extending radiallyto the periphery of said top portion and an elastic portion extendingfrom said non-elastic portion to said means connecting said plurality ofelastic members together.
 9. The recreational device of claim 1 whereinsaid base includes a relatively flat oblong shaped top portion which isselectively removable from said convex portion.
 10. The recreationaldevice of claim 9 wherein said upright member is selectively removablefrom said base and wherein said base includes at least one hole whichcan be selectively opened for introducing water into said convex portionof said base and closed for retaining water within said convex portionof said base.